Ed Foundation to honor four ‘Blossoms Forever’
Around Blooming Prairie, people know: Once a Blossom, always a Blossom.
That is rarely more apparent than every fall, when high school students become royalty, elementary school students scramble for parade candy – and former students gather to honor their own.
This year’s annual BP Education Foundation alumni banquet will begin with a social hour at 5 p.m. Oct. 3 at the Servicemen’s Club.
Dinner will be served at 6 p.m., with the awards presentation to follow.
The winners will also be honored at other events – including the Blooming Prairie Homecoming parade at 4:15 p.m. and the BP/Hayfield football game at 7 p.m., both Oct. 2.
Tickets are $60, and are available in advance at Sportstitch & More, 623 Sixth St. SE in Blooming Prairie.
The honorees for the 2026 Blossoms Forever are:
Athletic Hall of Fame
Rod Koster, Class of 1975
Rod played football, basketball and baseball at Blooming Prairie High School, and was a standout in all three sports.
He played on both sides of the ball for the undefeated football team his senior year, when the Blossoms went 10-0, eventually falling to Bird Island in the state semifinals.
In the first game of the season, Rod was five yards deep in the Grand Meadow end zone when he stepped in front of a pass – then outran everyone on the field. He churned up 105 yards for one of the longest interception returns in Blossoms history.
In the sixth game of his senior season, Rod dislocated his shoulder. While most people believed his season was over, the team continued its winning ways as Rod continued to heal.
His comeback was that semifinal game, which ended the season.
Rod was just as impressive on the basketball court; the Blossoms won the Gopher Conference championship with an 11-3 record his senior year. Along with teammates Bruce Hatteberg and Jay Welch, he was named to the all-conference team and was on WCCO Radio’s Team of the Week, All State, along with Welch.
He finished the year with 283 points, shooting 43% from the field; grabbed 108 rebounds (third on the team); had 33 assists and 35 steals. Rod’s 18.9 ppg average led the team – even though he missed five games due to an injury.
He was named the Blossoms’ boys basketball MVP for the 1974-75 season.
His basketball career didn’t end after graduation; he played at Austin Community College during the 1975/76 season, leading the team in scoring and free throws.
Rod’s baseball highlights round out his athletic performance.
As a Blossoms’ pitcher his junior year, Rod had success on the mound – including a two-hit shutout against Ellendale – and was equally important at the plate, collecting multiple key hits throughout the season while consistently ranking among the team leaders in batting average.
The team finished third in the Gopher Conference that year with an overall record of 9-6.
Rod was named to the all-conference team, along with Welch and Kerry Harvey.
In the first game of his senior year, Rod pitched a complete game and drove in four runs, but continued to battle that shoulder injury from football as the season progressed.
That season, the Blossoms finished with an overall record of 11-6, and Rod was once again named to the all-conference team, along with Welch and Denny Trom.
Karen Inwards, Class of 1987
Karen (Pesch) Inwards was a junior when the Blossoms won their first Gopher Conference championship in girls’ basketball and just its second winning season.
As a senior, she was a team captain and broke several school records, including rebounds.
She was catcher for the BPHS softball team, making her an integral part of the team, her nominator said.
She called Karen “a player that always worked well with others and was excited to play; everyone enjoyed being on the team with her.”
Karen was a leader, especially as a member of a class that didn’t have many girls who participated in sports. That made her a good role model for the younger girls on the teams.
She is still an active member of the Blooming Prairie School District, working as a paraprofessional with special needs students.
Karen helps with the adaptive bowling team, has been a referee for volleyball games for the younger athletes, and helps with the clock during basketball games.
She loves her job, the nominator said, and loves the students she works with.
Distinctive Service
L. Dean Christianson, Class of 1954
When you’ve lived somewhere nearly 90 years, you’ve probably had the opportunity to help out a little.
Dean has more than taken that to heart, his nominator said, by consistently stepping forward to fill needs within the Blooming Prairie community for more than 70 years – as an entrepreneur, elected official and volunteer.
His history of community contribution began shortly after his 1954 BPHS graduation and his completion of a two-year mechanic program at Riverland Community College. From 1956-60, he ran a rural milk delivery route, going door-to-door for Red Oak Grove Creamery.
Dean has always possessed an entrepreneurial spirit, owning and operating several local businesses.
He owned and operated the Emmons Standard gas station until 1962, when his brother, Douglas, was killed in a car/train crash. Dean returned home to help on the family farm, balancing those duties with his work as a mechanic at Stroschein Ford Garage.
He and his wife Sharon started their own business in 1965, owning and operating buses for the BP School District for 32 years before selling the business to their son. The couple drove countless routes; when weather conditions were poor, Dean would go out early in the morning to inspect the roads to determine if school would be delayed or canceled. Safety of the children and bus drivers was always paramount.
Dean and Sharon also bought the town laundromat and car wash; Dean found time to sell and repair snowmobiles at B&C Snowmobiles.
His strong work ethic continues today as he approaches his 90th birthday. He shows up promptly every morning at Smooth Moves, the boat seat suspension business owned by his son and daughter. Dean assembled kits, performs warranty work and makes coffee for the crew that stops by. He rarely misses a day.
In addition to running businesses and farming, Dean served as a Steele County Commissioner for 12 years; was a volunteer firefighter for 20 years, including fire chief for six; he was on the local elevator board for about nine years.
Dean was a Boy Scout leader, a member of the Lions Club, was a snowmobile safety instructor and is a member of First Lutheran Church in Blooming Prairie.
His nominator said Dean “has truly exemplified what it means to be a ‘Blossom Forever’ by living in, working in and serving the Blooming Prairie community … At age 89, he has done his part to make Blooming Prairie a great place to call home, live and raise a family.”
Outstanding Educator
Ann Stephenson
Ann attended high school down the road in Austin, then graduated from Winona State in 1985.
That summer, she was hired by Blooming Prairie School District to teach special education at the elementary school, beginning in the fall.
She worked in that capacity for seven years, then moved to a third-grade classroom for the next five years – before returning to special ed.
It was then that she split her time between the elementary and high schools, which eventually became a full-time role in the BPHS special ed department. It’s where she finally settled in – and has been there since.
Ann retired in the spring after 39 years in education, all of it in Blooming Prairie.
She was a great teacher who cared about her students, not only in the classroom, but also in their personal lives, her nominator said. It was always her goal that all her students passed their classes and took something away from the material.
Though Ann worked mostly in the special ed world, “she always wanted her students to get as much of the regular education material as possible.”
She worked closely with the parents, communicating what was best for the student, and made sure every “i” was dotted and “t” was crossed.
Her nominator called her a great coworker: Blooming Prairie School District will miss her.